Nakiri Azami and the 12 Days of Christmas
by BestGrell
Summary: Headmaster Nakiri Azami is not one to have the Christmas spirit. However, when his niece suddenly assembles a killer choir of Christmas carolers, will he be able to resist joining in? And what of Hayama Akira, the turncoat ninth seat? Will his view of Christmas change? Join pretty much all the SNS characters in this holiday low-key crack fic, featuring slight RyoAli and TsuRindou!
1. 11 Days Before Christmas

****Hello, and thanks so much for reading! This is something I wrote a few years ago, so sorry if some of the characters (especially the Elite Ten) don't seem entirely accurate. Now, let's flashback to the days long before all the Asahi drama...****

 ** **Standard disclaimer applies, and I hope you enjoy this!****

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _ _Ding-dong__.

"Who on earth could that be?"

That was how it began. On that particular December 14th, Headmaster Nakiri Azami was incredibly annoyed, even more so than usual. After all, he was holding a meeting with the new Elite Ten about a most unpleasant topic: how to get rid of the rebels who opposed Central's plans. The upcoming promotion exams should take care of them all, he thought. The question was whether or not the Elite Ten would need to get involved.

Just as the discussion had begun, however, they were interrupted by a resounding knock on the door. As he wasn't expecting anyone himself, the irritated headmaster turned to the others in the room and demanded, "Did someone order food again?" The Elite Ten's attention turned to Kobayashi Rindou, who just shook her head with a grin and denied, "It wasn't me, this time."

"Well, someone should get the door." The pale man's ebony eyes stared at each one of the Elite Ten members expectantly. In the absence of any action, he sighed, got up from the head of the table, and unnecessarily said, "Fine, I'll get it."

In a few short boot-lengths, he reached the door and opened it. Much to his disappointment, it was his niece, with her personal aide in tow.

"Hello, Uncle Azami!" sang Nakiri Alice, who seemed unusually exuberant for someone standing outside in the cold.

"What do you want, Alice?" Azami replied flatly.

"We're Christmas caroling!" she cheered, completely unfazed by his unenthusiastic response.

"…But it's not Christmas."

"We know, but just, listen!"

With that, she turned to her aide beside her, who was holding a small shrub in his gloved hands. "Ryou-kun!" chirped Alice, and the muscular young man cleared his throat and began to sing.

"On the first day of Christmas, Milady gave to me," his deep voice rang out. "A partridge in a pear tree!" he exclaimed, holding up his small bonsai and gesturing to the small bird inside. Alice burst into mad applause.

The headmaster just stared at them blankly. " . . . That's it?" he questioned, annoyed that he had even answered the door.

"Yep!" Alice enthused. "Thank you for your time!" And with that, the two teenagers sprinted back towards their ward of the house.

Nakiri Azami just stood there for a few seconds, in utter disbelief and disappointment. He blinked twice, shut the door, locked it, turned around, and slowly trudged back to the meeting room.

"Who was it?" pondered Rindou, bouncing in her chair.

"No one important," replied Azami dismissively.

"But wasn't that Nakiri-chan and Kurokiba-kun?" the second seat countered.

"Yes, unfortunately," he muttered unenthusiastically. Hayama Akira sat up in his seat, suddenly curious.

Kinokuni Nene looked at her headmaster, concerned. "Isn't she your niece?"

"Yes, unfortunately," replied Azami again, then continued, "She was... Christmas caroling."

There was a sudden buzz in the room, as the council members shot strange looks at each other. Finally, Saito Somei protested, "But Headmaster... It's not Christma-"

"I KNOW THAT!" Azami screeched, slamming his hand on the table.

Rindou grinned. "Christmas caroling... Sounds like fun!" Azami shot her a death glare, then transitioned, "Now, back to the topic at hand..."

* * *

 ** **And so it begins... Again, thank you for reading! I had a lot of fun with this fic, and will (hopefully) be updating every day from now until Christmas. By the way, can anyone else imagine Rindou ordering food in the middle of a meeting? I just feel like that's something she would do, even though they go to the best culinary academy in the world. She's kinda one crazy cat, so I tried my best to portray her as such! :)****


	2. 10 Days Before Christmas

**Greetings, everyone! Welcome to Day 2! I just want to start off by thanking the wonderful anon returning-reader from last year who has already been so kind as to give me a review: I appreciate it a lot and hope that you continue to read! I also wanted to say now that for those of you who read this last year, that I'm adding a few new bonus chapters along the way to keep things interesting. Have fun!**

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _ _Ding-dong.__

"Again?"

Azami didn't even bother looking at the Elite Ten this time. Instead, he just got up silently and tromped over to the door. At that time, the Elite Ten had made plans to meet every single day until the promotion exams, on and through Christmas day. However, Azami angrily thought to himself, if there continue to be delays, we might need to make the meetings even longer. That meant the headmaster would need to spend longer periods of time mulling over how to best eliminate his enemies. The very thought gave Azami a headache.

Soon enough, the headmaster reached the door. He cautiously opened it just a crack, only to be hit with an incredibly powerful, "HELLO, UNCLE AZAMI!"

"Hello, Alice," he sighed, exasperated, opening the door fully. He had now decided that Alice's voice was twice as likely to give him a headache as extended meetings were.

"We're Christmas caroling!" she cheered.

"Again?" he groaned.

"Yeah!"

"But, it's still not Christmas ye-"

"We know, but just, LISTEN!"

With another sigh, the headmaster folded his arms and stood there, unsure of what else to do. Alice pulled out a whistle from her skirt pocket, and blew into it with a loud tweet. Azami flinched at the noise. Then, two birds gracefully descended from above and perched on the cheery girl's arm.

With a perky smile, Alice began: "On the second day of Christmas, my Ryou-kun gave to me:" She merrily sang, flashing Kurokiba a grin, "Two turtle doves-"

"And a partridge in a pear tree!" Kurokiba finished, proudly showing that he had brought his shrub along, today, too. Headmaster Azami was not impressed. He was already shutting the door when his niece called out, "Thank you for your time!"

After locking the door once again, he returned to the meeting room to face an enthusiastic Rindou once. "Was it them again?" she excitedly questioned.

Azami stared at her, unamused. "Yes, Rindou, it was them."

She gave at cat-like grin, and thought, "Man, I wish I could go caroling." She turned to the first seat, sitting across from her. "Hey, Tsukasa, will you take me caroling?"

Everyone stared awkwardly between Rindou and her boyfriend, as he replied, "Uh, sure, Rindou, maybe later."

Kinokuni adjusted her glasses. "If you don't mind my asking, Headmaster, do you think these caroling bouts will continue? They're cutting into our meeting time!"

The headmaster simply shook his head. "Yes, I've thought of that, Kinokuni, but I think today should be the last day. After all, there are only two of them. Even if they do find some way to continue tomorrow, I'll just shoo them away."

Little did he know then, of the large string of events that would be set into play by his very actions, or that before Christmas even came that year, Nakiri Azami would be left with no choice... but to be jolly!


	3. 9 Days Before Christmas

****Hey guys! I'm glad people are still reading at this point, as it's now Day 3 of this advent-calendar-like fan fic, and I hope you savor this next chapter! BTW, the first "Bonus Chapter" of new material is coming out later today! It's a bit of a different style than the rest of this fic, but might still be worth a read, I hope!****

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _ _Ding-dong.__

"What the heck?!"

The headmaster stormed out of his chair and towards the door. Rindou smiled, but everyone else groaned.

As Azami burst through the entryway, he shouted, "Enough! I don't need your Christmas carols today, thank you very much!" He was about to slam the door when he noticed something odd, or rather, someone.

"Who... is that?" Azami asked, suddenly gesturing to the awkward-looking boy with big round glasses who was currently standing behind Kurokiba and Alice.

The boy in question adjusted his spectacles, as Alice replied, "That is the newest member of our choir! We call him Marui!"

"…What? Why would you invite him?" said Azami, surprised by the appearance of such a seemingly irrelevant character.

"Just LISTEN!" his niece replied, thrilled that he had asked.

Trying not to be too offended by the headmaster's harsh comment, the nerdy boy shifted his weight around, then began to sing in his slightly nasally voice: "On the third day of Christmas, Yoshino gave to me:" He held up one plump farm bird, beaming as he glanced at the two others at his feet. "Three French hens!"

"Two turtle doves", Alice added, presenting her arm, on which her two birds were now sitting, "And a partridge in a pear tree!" Ryou concluded, still holding his small tree. Azami looked, astounded, from Marui Zenji, to his hens, to Ryou's shrub, to Alice, who nodded and remarked, "Thank you for your time!"

Azami shut the door slowly this time, pressing his back against it, then locking it not once, but twice. Then, he madly dashed back to the meeting room. Out of breath, he explained, "They have another one!"

The Elite Ten exchanged glances, confused, then Kinokuni asked, "You mean, another choir member?"

"Yes!" Azami exclaimed. "His name was Stauryu, or Maury, or something like that." Everyone shook their heads. "Never heard of him," Hayama replied a little too quickly. Azami frowned. "Well, I've made up my mind. Tomorrow, I'm not answering the door."

"WHAT!? That's no fun!" Rindou protested.

Azami fiercely shook his head. "It's not about fun, Rindou. This stunt is taking up our meeting time!"

She pouted in reply, then mumbled, "I know, but it's nice to have a little break." Then, with a mischievous grin, she asked, "Hey, Tsukasa, do you think Nakiri-chan would let me join her choir?"

Everyone turned to glare at Tsukasa, each with an expression screaming, "You know what to say, right?" But, unfortunately, Tsukasa didn't know what to say. As he looked at the hopeful face of his girlfriend, he could only manage a weak smile and a shrug. "I don't know Rindou. They just might."

Azami grimaced, and Tsukasa, catching himself, weakly added, "But then again, they might not." Rindou frowned and grumbled to herself. Finally, the headmaster took his place at the head of the table, tried to forget about the morning's traumas, and continued with the meeting.

* * *

 ** **Ok, so I've been asked, "Why did you choose Marui Zenji as your first new choir member? Why not someone more important?" Well, the answer to that is three simple points: First, Yoshino was by far the most likely person to have three French hens, so it had to be one of her associates. Second, I imagine Alice being somewhat desperate to find someone new to join her choir, as she doesn't have many friends, so she'd most likely just take in whoever was free at the caroling time. Third, if I reveal all the major characters early on, I'd probably lose all my readers! I hope you liked it, and see you tomorrow! If that's not enough explanation, then read the Bonus chapter later today!****


	4. Bonus 1: Ode to a Ginger

****Hi everyone! As I may have mentioned before, I wrote some new, behind-the-scenes-like bonus chapters for this year to keep things interesting. This is one of them.****

 ** **NOTE: You do NOT need to read this chapter to read or understand the rest of this story! This is almost like a spin-off chapter to my own fan fic.****

 ** **With that said, "Ode to a Ginger" is a Marui Zenji x Yoshino Yuki chapter, dedicated to IceColdSea, one of my favorite Shokugeki no Soma fan fic writers. This is her OTP. Anyway, I'd highly recommend anything she's written!****

* * *

 _Earlier that morning…_

At the Polar Star Dormitory, Marui Zenji continued to pace back and forth in front of her door, crinkling the paper in one hand and adjusting his glasses with the other. Original poetry had never been his strength, but according to all the books he'd read, it was the best way to win the heart of the girl he loved. And so, in his hand, he held a poem, short and sweet and rhyming, dedicated to that special someone. He read it to himself over and over, trying to work up the courage to enter the girl's room and gift it to her. The poem started like this:

You may not be all curvy, but I don't really mind,

'Cause you're the nicest, kindest girl that I could ever find.

You may not be a genius, or really all that smart,

But when you smile, for a while, it truly warms my heart.

You have all sorts of energy I never could possess,

The sight of your bright ginger buns brings so much happiness

He halted, thinking, _This poem is terrible! Bright ginger buns? I know I'm talking about her_ _hair_ _, but what if she thinks I'm talking about her…_ Marui nearly died of embarrassment. _This won't do at all! "Nicest" and "kindest" are synonyms, the rhymes all feel forced… What should I do?_

The poor lad curled up in a ball, rocking himself and sobbing. He wanted to impress her, not sound like some sort of pervert! Softly, he finished, reading the last two lines in a whisper:

So maiden of the forest, with skin as fair as snow,

Please offer me your tender heart, my dear sweet-

"Yoshino!" called Nakiri Alice perkily, bursting through the front door of the Polar Star Dorm, Kurokiba just a step behind her.

Marui hastily picked himself up, dropping the poem on the floor and turning to face the visitors. In his typical, somewhat nasally voice, he responded, "Um, I think Yoshino-san is in her room."

Alice looked up at the glassesed boy, confused. "Who are you?"

"Marui Zenji," he replied nervously, "I'm, uh, in your class?"

Kurokiba turned his head sideways, lazily adding, "I think we were in the same hall for the Autumn Election Qualifiers." Marui nodded, grateful for the recognition, before the muscular boy continued, "I don't really remember you at all, though."

Marui flinched, thinking to himself, _I only scored four points less than you, you know!_

After a pause, Kurokiba pondered, "Wait… were you that smoke guy?"

"Anyway," Alice butted in, clearly uninterested, "We have a little favor to ask Yuki-san, so if you don't mind- Huh?" The girl stopped, realizing she had stepped on a slightly crumpled piece of paper, wondering, "What's this?"

Marui gasped, instantly recognizing the sheet as his poem and starting to protest, "I really don't think you should…" But it was too late. She had already picked up the paper and started reading it, Kurokiba looking on over her shoulder.

"Aww! This is so sweet!" Alice chimed. "Did you write this, Naru-kun?"

Marui pushed up his glasses, only to have them slip down his nose again. "My name is Marui, actually, and yes, I must confess that poem is mine."

Kurokiba nodded. "So, you're the type of guy who's more into the bottom than the top, I guess."

Marui blinked furiously, "I beg your pardon?"

The man made an hourglass figure with his hands. "I mean, if you were to have a girl more bottom-heavy or top-heavy… because she's kinda flat… and you mentioned her buns…"

"ACK!" Marui screeched, "No, no no no no, I didn't mean it like that!"

Nakiri finally looked up from the poem and grinned at its writer, then glanced over at Kurokiba, stating, "Well, I guess we've found the newest member of our choir, then!"

"WHAT!?" both dark-haired boys replied in unison.

With a giggle, she elaborated, "See, we were planning to recruit Tadokoro Megumi to sing with us tomorrow, because she's good friends with Yuki-san and could easily borrow some hens from her. But given your situation, Marui-kun, it seems like the perfect opportunity!" She leaned forward. "If you go in there right now, and Yoshino says she loves you back, will you join our Christmas caroling choir?"

The nerdy boy stuttered, "I mean, I guess so…"

"But Milady," Kurokiba began to protest, "Can he really sing?"

"He doesn't need to be any _good_ at singing," Alice explained, "If anything, that'll just annoy Uncle Azami even more!"

 _I can hear you! I'm standing right here!_ Marui thought. Before he could say anything, though, Alice was behind him, gently pushing him towards Yoshino's door.

"Now here's what you do," Alice sang, "You go inside, and you confess your love for Yoshino Yuki. Then, when she's feeling all happy and generous, you ask if you can borrow three of her hens for the next week or so!"

"Three FRENCH hens," Kurokiba specified.

"Right!" Alice nodded.

Marui looked less certain. "I don't know if I can do this…"

"Of course you can!" Alice cheered. "Go for it!"

With that, Marui knocked on the door, nervously calling, "Yoshino?"

Kurokiba pulled Alice aside. "What if she turns him down?" he whispered.

She shrugged. "Then we go back to our original plan and recruit Tadokoro instead," she whispered back.

The aide raised an eyebrow. "You're a little bit cruel, using him like this."

"Oh, please," she pouted, "He was gonna confess, anyways! I'm just trying to get something out of it!"

Meanwhile, Yoshino's voice called out, "Come in!" and Marui turned around for the last time, receiving a thumbs-up from Alice, before opening the door and stepping inside.

Yoshino Yuki was seated on the floor of her bedroom, flipping through a food magazine when he entered. Dressed in her black jacket that makes her bright eyes and shining hair pop, she looked up at him and smiled. "Oh, it's just you, Marui-kun."

He frowned, shaking nervously. "Just me?" he echoed, disappointed.

She shook her head, "I didn't mean it like _that_ ; I just thought I heard voices outside and expected visitors." She turned a page in her reading material. "So, what's up?"

Marui straightened up, arms firmly by his side as he began, "I… I…"

Yoshino looked up from her magazine, concerned as to what was bothering him. "Yes?"

"I was just wondering, um, if maybe you would, uh…" He faltered, his voice trailing off.

"Spit it out!" she chanted.

He lost hope, finishing, "I was wondering if I could borrow a few of your hens for the next two weeks."

"Oh," the red-head stuck her cheeks out at the anti-climactic request; now she was disappointed, too. "Sure," she murmured, "As long as you don't kill them, it's fine."

Marui smiled, comforted by her cuteness and generosity. "Thanks, Yoshino," he mused, stepping towards the door. In the heat of the moment, he glanced back and spoke, as sweet as honey, "And by the way: I love you."

In that moment, Yoshino Yuki's mouth fell open. Her entire face shone with a sparkling clarity, and her brilliant teal eyes glimmered with wonder and surprise. Still smiling, Marui turned away.

He took another step towards the door, then stopped in his tracks, suddenly petrified. _WHAT!?_ Had he really just said something that smooth? What had he done? The apparent sound of the magazine suddenly dropping to the ground and the creak of floorboards, suggesting Yoshino was standing up, did NOT help his anxiety.

"What," Yuki demanded, "did you just say to me?"

"Uh…"

She charged him, grabbing Marui by the shoulders and turning him around, while pressing him against the door, shaking him, lecturing,

"MARUI ZENJI! You do NOT just tell someone you love them and then try to leave, without even asking that person how they feel or anything! This is ridiculous! You big dork! Possibly the worst confession ever…"

Yuki paused, observing the shocked look on her victim's face. Suddenly, she let go of him, took a step back, and snapped into a bow. "I… I love you too!" she yelled, looking as if she were about to burst into tears.

Marui's eyes softened. "Yuki…"

She straightened up again, giving her usual mischievous grin. "So don't you go running away from me!" With that, she jumped up on the tips of her toes and kissed him on the cheek. Both of them stood there for a while, blushing in a comfortable silence, before she stated, "Now go and get some hens! They're in the coop out back."

He nodded "Okay" before fumbling for the door handle and leaving, waiting until the last second to break eye-contact.

He was immediately met by Alice and Kurokiba, the former of which cheerfully inquired, "So, how did it go?"

Marui smiled and shook his head. "I think it went-"

"YEEEEESSSSSSSSSSS!" a familiar voice suddenly cried from inside of Yoshino's room, "YES Yes yes Yes YES! FINALLY!"

Grinning, Marui finished, "I think it went quite well."

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading! I know that this chapter is a major change of pace from my other stuff, but I hope it was enjoyable nonetheless. I'll see you tomorrow for another, main storyline chapter!**


	5. 8 Days Before Christmas

**Day 4! Here we go! What will happen now that Azami has refused to open the door? Find out below!**

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _Ding-dong_.

Silence. No one moved an inch in the meeting room, as Nakiri Azami slowly gritted his teeth. He had already put his foot down yesterday. No way would he answer the door, this time.

Knock knock knock.

 _Ding-dong_.

More silence.

"Headmaster Azami? Can I get it?" asked Rindou.

Angrily, Azami stammered, "Fine, but make it quick."

"Yay! Momo, come with me!" exclaimed the cheerful second seat. The small girl looked up at her with big eyes as she gave her stuffed companion a tight hug. "Yes, Bucchi can come too." Rindou chirped in reply.

Momo got up and accompanied Rindou to the main hallway. Suddenly, the cat-like woman flung open the door, just missing Momo's face, as she yelled: "Hello, Nakiri-chan!"

"Hello, Rindou-senpai!" responded Alice, with equal ebullience. "Oh, and Momo-senpai too," she added, addressing the short girl cowering behind the door. Turning back to Rindou, she continued, "We're Christmas caroling!"

"I know! It sounds like fun!"

"It is! I'd really appreciate it if Uncle Azami would come to watch, though."

Rindou frowned. "Yeah, don't worry about him. He's nothing but an old Scrooge. More like the Grinch!"

"I can HEAR you, you know!" called the headmaster from the meeting room.

Undaunted, she turned back to the first-years and noted the newest member of the choir. "Ah, it's you! Good to see you again. I suppose you're gonna sing for us now?"

Tadokoro Megumi gently nodded, before getting a signal of approval from Alice and sweetly beginning her song: "On the fourth day of Christmas, my hometown sent to me: four calling birds," Sure enough, in an opened package in the girl's arms, a quartet of tweeting birds sat, joyfully accompanying Tadokoro with her caroling.

"Three French hens," squawked Marui, his own birds suddenly calling out, but in a less than beautiful manner, "Two turtle doves," added Alice, before Ryou ended "and a partridge in a pear tree!"

Rindou applauded, incredibly pleased with the performance. "That was lovely, Tadokoro-chan! You should sing more often!"

The poor girl blushed. "Really? Uh, thank you, senpai."

"And thank you for your time!" added Alice, waving at the upperclassmen.

"See you tomorrow!" countered Rindou.

"Hopefully not!" cried Headmaster Azami from the meeting room, regretting his decision to let them answer the door.

As the two girls returned, Momo suddenly spoke out in a quiet voice: "Bucchi likes Christmas carols."

Everyone stared at the third seat, unsure of whether this confession could be considered a treasonous act. She quickly added, "But I don't." The Elite Ten sighed, and let the petite pâtissière take her seat at the table.

"Geez, since when did enjoying the holiday season become illegal?" pondered Rindou.

"Ever since it became a sign of the rebellion!" Eizan Etsuya seethed, leaning back in his chair. "I mean, the whole purpose of this caroling is clearly to distract us from our meetings!"

Rindou tilted her head, considering this. "I wonder about that. I feel like there would be more effective ways for Nakiri to stop the meeting, if she wanted to."

Headmaster Azami threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. "Well, I don't know nor care why they chose this method, all I care about is getting them out of my school, and the most effective way to do that!"

With that Rindou let out a defeated sigh, propped her feet up on the table, and proceeded to hum "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" for the rest of the meeting.

* * *

 **I'm just now realizing that Rindou was probably wearing a skirt, and therefore should not be propping her feet up on the table... Oh, well. Anyway, now that it's been brought up, it's time to start thinking about Alice's true motivations for caroling! They'll become clear enough, in time, but you can get some ideas started now!**


	6. A Week Before Christmas

****Yikes, it's only a week until Christmas! Time sure flies! Anyway, just a heads up about this chapter: As those of you who have read this before know, most all of this fic uses a WTF kind of humor; that is to say, it's so absurd it's funny. This upcoming chapter in particular happens to be especially absurd, to the point of being somewhat unrealistic. Please excuse this slight inaccuracy, noting that it is for comedic purposes, and with that...****

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _ _Ding-dong__.

Ka-tonk!

A very merry Rindou opened the window.

Just as Azami began, "What are you-", she jumped. Out. The window. __Thunk.__ Tsukasa leaped to his feet, and everyone in the room gasped.

Azami glanced down in astonishment at Rindou's body, lying limply in the bushes below. Sure, __he__ was thinking about jumping out the window if the doorbell rang again, but __Rindou__? That was unexpected.

Not about to lose one of his best chefs, Azami bolted towards the door. As he hurriedly opened it, much to his surprise (although it shouldn't have been), he was met by a small choir of cheerful carolers.

"Hello, Uncle Azami! Glad to see you answered the door today!"

This time, Azami was not just annoyed, but frightened by their presence. "Alice, move! I'm serious. Rindou just jumped out of the window!"

Alice grinned and nodded exuberantly. "I know! Isn't she great? Highly dedicated."

Just as Azami was about to question Alice, the mystery of the hour herself came jogging up to the doorstep. Rindou, although covered in leaves and twigs and slightly scratched up, was still standing there, wearing her signature smile. "Sorry I'm late, guys," she remarked casually to the quartet of carolers.

Alice happily responded, "No problemo, Senpai! I'm glad you could make it!" The Elite Ten, who had heard Rindou's voice from the meeting room, were now gathered in the entranceway. Now with an audience, Rindou plucked a few branches out of her hair and opened her mouth.

"On the fifth day of Christmas, Tsukasa gave to me…" She gave Tsukasa a flirtatious wink, and all the Elite Ten members (plus Azami) leaned inwards, waiting anxiously to hear what this gift could be. Rindou raised up her right hand to reveal a blinding glimmer on each of her fingers. "FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!" she bragged, and Kinokuni's mouth fell open.

The turquoise-haired girl exclaimed, "Oh my gosh... YOU'RE GETTING MARRIED!? Congratulations, you two!", as the men of the Elite Ten tackled the first seat in a messy sort of bear hug.

Tsukasa tried to protest, "No, it's not what you think! Rindou just stole my credit card! I didn't propose!" as Rindou began to show off her rings to Alice and Megumi.

Things died down slightly, as Tadokoro continued, "Four calling birds" "Three French hens!" "Two turtle doves…" Alice sang, clearly annoyed that her birds had now dug several holes in her sweater sleeve, "And a partridge in a pear tree!" Kurokiba closed.

Now coming to his senses, Azami slowly concluded, "You… joined… them, Rindou?"

Alice jumped in to answer, "Yep! Rindou-senpai is part of our choir now! Thank you for your time!" And with that, she waved goodbye to the second seat and walked off with the rest of her crew.

Rindou turned to Azami and grinned. "Well, that was fun, wasn't it?" Azami responded by slamming the door in her face, locking it, and promptly pacing back towards the meeting room.

Tsukasa gaped, "You're not actually gonna lock her out, right, Headmaster?"

With a slight frown, he replied, "If you mean forever, of course not. She can attend tomorrow's meeting. But I am temporarily punishing her." Then, with a grin, he added, "Don't worry, Tsukasa. You'll see your fiancée soon enough."

With a blush, Tsukasa murmured a protest, then returned to the meeting room.

* * *

 ** **My only explanation is as follows: a cat has nine lives. Now don't worry; if this was too crazy for you, the other chapter will be tamer. If you liked this... Well, tell me, and I suppose I could arrange for Rindou to jump out the window again! Thanks for reading, as always, and SUPER THANKS to those of you who have reviewed and/or followed this story! You guys are the best!****


	7. 6 Days Before Christmas

****Good morning, all! As we are now (about) halfway through this fan fic, I'd like to officially thank everyone who's been keeping up with this story! Come to think of it, I've been doing a LOT of thanking... I hope that isn't too annoying for y'all. Without further ado, chapter six!****

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _ _Ding-dong.__

Grin. Azami knew he had outsmarted them this time.

Today, there was absolutely no way that he would get serenaded again. He had kept his promise and let Rindou come to the meeting, but she was tied tightly to her chair with ropes to prevent her from opening the door or joining the carolers. Also, as an extra precaution, Azami had locked the door to the meeting room, in case they tried to break in. No WAY were they getting in!

Hayama worriedly asked, "Headmaster, are you alright?"

Azami turned to him, puzzled. "Yes, I'm fine. Is something wrong, Hayama-kun?"

He shook his head and muttered, "Nothing. You just looked REALLY happy just now."

The Headmaster let out a strange chuckle and replied, "Is there something wrong with that? Hmmm?"

The ninth seat shuddered, clearly disturbed, as Rindou fought her constraints. Suddenly, __Click.__ The meeting room unlocked. The double doors opened, and Arato Hisako slowly walked in, pushing a narrow cart. At first, the Elite Ten thought she might be bringing them snacks, but then they saw the contents of the cart: six feathery blobs rested on six nests, all crammed onto the metal slab.

The secretary stopped in her tracks a few steps into the meeting room, then quietly cleared her throat. Not yet catching on, Headmaster Azami pondered, "What is it, Arato?", and then, she began to sing.

"On the sixth day of Christmas…" "NOOOOO!" Azami cried, banging his head on the table. Hisako cautiously continued, "Er'na-sama gave to me: Six geese a-laying"

"FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!" Rindou exclaimed, standing up on her chair with one hand waving in the air. She must have managed to untie her ropes at some point. As the Elite Ten Members wriggled their eyebrows at the now-blushing Tsukasa, the other four members of the choir joined Hisako in the meeting room's entrance, each one holding their respective gifts.

"Four calling birds," "Three French hens," "Two turtle doves" "And a partridge in a pear tree!" Today, Alice was smiling cheerfully once again, for she had bought a leather bird glove so her doves would stop scratching her arm. The joy from the new gift allowed her the scream with unrivaled and extreme energy, "HELLO, UNCLE AZAMI!"

"UGH!" was the response, as she finished with "Thank you for your time!" The five first years made their exit, closing the doors behind them and leaving a trail of feathers in their wake.

Rindou sat down, crossing her arms and displaying a smug expression. "See? No matter what you do, Headmaster, you'll always get sung to, every day, from now until Christmas. Stop trying to change your fate."

Azami was still looking down at the table, head in his hands. "I forgot that Arato has the master-key," he sulked. "That was a smart move, Alice, recruiting the secretary to your choir. I'll just have to be smarter."

He looked up and turned to the first seat. "Tsukasa! From now on, you are in charge of Rindou. Make sure she doesn't meet with Alice or any of the other first years between now and tomorrow's meeting."

The first seat nodded, "Yes, Headmaster!"

"Good. Kinokuni!"

"Yes, Headmaster?"

"You are in charge of getting the master-key from Arato Hisako as soon as possible and giving it to me. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Fantastic. Momo!"

Silence. The third seat turned to look up at her headmaster.

Azami ordered, "You are in charge of watching Alice and Kurokiba. I want to know who tomorrow's addition to the choir is!"

The small girl gave a puzzled look. "But, Headmaster…. Why do you need to know that?"

The Headmaster faltered, hesitant to admit that he was actually personally curious. So instead, he gave the eternally correct response, "Because I said so!"

With a sudden feeling of confidence, Azami grinned. "Tomorrow, we'll show them!" he proclaimed, although, deep inside, he felt as if it wouldn't be all that bad if he did get serenaded the next day.

* * *

 ** **I'll keep this brief: if you've been following this fan fiction religiously, and want to keep that trend, you**** ** _ **might**_** ** **want to consider checking later tonight... Maybe. If not, then you**** ** _ **might**_** ** **have an extra surprise tomorrow morning! ;) This includes a new bonus chapter, too, one that might not make much sense if you're not American... But was so much fun I had to do it!****


	8. Later that Night

**A-HA! An extra night chapter! I bet no one who read my comments earlier was expecting that... And there's also a bonus chapter that goes with it! Enjoy!**

* * *

Bring-bring.

"Hello?"

The headmaster paused, before shouting into his phone one more time. "Hello!?"

"I'm here, Headmaster," a quiet voice murmured. Although the voice was difficult to hear, Azami instantly recognized it.

"Ah yes, Momo. What is it?"

"Well, um… I was trailing Kurokiba and… Bucchi is really scared."

"Bucchi is… scared?"

"Uh-huh," she whimpered, "It's really dark, and this area is kinda sketchy. I'm in an ally off Twilight Boulevard."

While the headmaster was tempted to tell her to tough it out, for this was important information she was after, he was not completely heartless. "Alright, Momo, would you like me to send someone out there to meet you? How about Eizan-kun?"

The girl responded cheerfully, "Uh-huh! That's a good idea! Eizan-kun has lots of business connections, so if we get beat up, our attackers would never eat at a nice restaurant again!"

That's not exactly what I had in mind, thought Azami, but what he said was, "Hang in there, Momo. Eizan will be there shortly, and then you won't have to be afraid anymore." The response was a frighteningly low chuckle.

"Me? Afraid? Good joke, Headmaster. Nothing scares me. It's BUCCHI who's the scaredy cat." And with that, she hung up. Shocked, the headmaster could only gawk for a few seconds, before punching a few numbers into his phone.

The next call was made to the former ninth seat. Eizan grumbled and complained about how he didn't have time to babysit his senpai, and how this whole anti-caroling scheme was stupid, anyways. However, it only took a short reminder of how he was in no state to question the headmaster, especially after losing that Shokugeki, to make him agree to go. About ten minutes later, Azami was called again, this time by Eizan's cell phone.

Before he was even done saying "Hello", the frantic voice whispered, "He's huge." The headmaster paused, awaiting an explanation that wasn't coming. Eventually realizing this, he asked, "What?"

Momo cut in, "The new choir member. At least, we think it is. He's meeting with Kurokiba, and showing him a box of some sort."

The girl's protector added, "I'm not sure who it is, but I think he's a first year. He probably wasn't in the Autumn Elections, though, because I would have recognized him…" There was a slight hesitation, before continued, "Although… That black, spiky hair looks like that one Italian kid's, but it can't be! That guy was scrawny, and this boy's pretty fat. They couldn't possibly be the same person."

Suddenly, he interrupted himself with, "What? Oh, shoot! They're coming! Get down, senpai!" The duo of teenage boys strolled down the alley towards their seniors. Azami could only hear a muffled version of the conversation, but he could still make out most of the words:

"So, I should just give this to my bro? He'll like it?"

"Of course," a deep, lazy voice responded. "There's nothing better for an early Christmas gift."

"Alright, then! Grazie, Kurokiba-kun!" There was a pattering of footsteps, then Eizan was back on the phone.

"I saw it, Headmaster! What was in the box!"

Leaping to his feet, Azami pleaded "What was it!? Tell me!"

"It was… a swimming pool."

Silence.

"A… what, Eizan?"

"An inflatable swimming pool, and just one."

"B-b-but!" Azami stuttered, "There can't be just one! It has to be SEVEN! Remember the song?" Much to Eizan's dismay, Azami began to aggressively speak through the song. "Six geese a-laying, five golden rings, four calling birds, three French hens…"

"Okay, alright, we get it, Headmaster," Momo butted in.

Azami tilted his head sideways. "Come to think of it, I wonder how they got all these birds!"

Momo grumpily interjected, "Anyway, I think we've been tricked. This is all just a set-up, and right now, Alice is meeting with the real new member."

"WHAT!? NO! I should've had one of you watching Alice!" The Headmaster facepalmed, then grudgingly thanked the two council members for their work and hung up.

Meanwhile, in the Nakiri Manor, Alice had just finished her meeting. "Just remember: The line is 'seven swans a-swimming'. You have a great tenor, so as long as you get the words, this should be great. I'll see you tomorrow!" And he was gone.

* * *

 **Alright, so tomorrow's choir member is gonna be a BIG surprise now, I know, but I liked writing this, and trying to imagine Eizan and Momo crouched up in some dark alleyway, trying to read the box without being seen. That was honestly fun. PLUS, it allows me to introduce the second bonus chapter! :)**


	9. Bonus 2: Seafood Brings All the Birds

**BONUS CHAPTER #2! This one is less of an additional chapter as it is a self-indulgent song fic, but I couldn't resist! After all, we now need to answer Azami's question: how did Kurokiba and Alice get all those birds?**

 **So, for those of you who may not know, there's this fairly annoying, trashy, suggestive innuendo of a song called "Milkshake" by Kelis, better known by its chorus, "My Milkshake Brings All the Boys to the Yard". In summary, the song is about how attractive the girl singing it is.**

 **Below, I have written a parody to this song, sung by Kurokiba Ryou, about how attractive his seafood is to all the surrounding birds. For anyone who wants to listen to the original song, here's the link (take out the spaces!): www. youtube DOT com / watch?v=i4YutyVP7ig **

**There's also an arguably better version, more likely to be sung by Kurokiba, here: www. youtube DOT com /watch?v=I7NnyYKbGx4**

 **Sing along with these lyrics if you want! Have fun!**

* * *

 _Five days earlier…_

Nakiri Alice and Kurokiba Ryou were standing in the park, an empty crate by their side. The girl looked slightly concerned. "Are you sure you can do this, Ryou-kun? There isn't a single bird in sight!"

The man simply scoffed, pulling out his bandana and staring off into the distance. Letting out a huff breath, he grunted, "Don't doubt me, Milady." And with that, he started his grill and began to prepare the ingredients he had bought earlier at the fish market, singing:

 _My seafood brings all the birds to the yard,_ _  
_ _And they're like: Is that salmon charred?  
DAMN RIGHT! That salmon IS charred!  
I would teach you, but it'd be too hard_

 _[x2]_

 _I know they want it,  
The things I make are __what the gulls go crazy for.  
They lose their minds,  
The way I fry,  
I think it's time_

Kurokiba flipped his fish on the grill, letting it land with a tantalizing sizzle. Noticing that Alice was staring at him and giggling, he winked at her, then continued:

 _La, la, la, la, la,  
Grill it up.  
La, la, la, la, la,  
The doves are waiting_

 _[x2]_

 _My seafood brings all the birds to the yard,  
And they're like: Is that cooked with lard?  
DAMN RIGHT! That IS cooked with lard!  
I would teach you, but it'd be too hard  
[x2]_

At this point, flocks of birds came flooding in to get a taste of Ryou's food. Laughing, Alice ushered them into the giant bird crate, smiling appreciatively at her boyfriend and aide. He simply shook his head, wagging his spatula at her and speculating:

 _I can see you want it,  
You want me to teach the techniques that bring these birds,  
It can't be taught,  
Just know, it's an art,  
Watch if you're smart_

 _La, la, la, la, la,  
Cook it up,  
La, la, la, la, la,  
The geese are waiting,  
[2x]_

 _My seafood brings all the birds to the yard,  
And they're like: Is that caviar?  
DAMN RIGHT! That IS caviar!  
I would teach you, but it'd be too hard_

 _[x2]_

"We're good now!" Alice called, having captured a partridge, two turtle doves, four "calling" birds, six geese, and seven swans already. Kurokiba, in full berserk mode at this point, simply smirked. "I'm just getting started," he taunted, pulling out a large box, filled with various spices.

 _Oh, once your food evolves,  
Everyone will look your way so  
you can maintain your smarm,  
Can still maintain your ego,  
Just get a nice spice blend,  
Plus add some cinnamon,  
Then next they all fly in,  
They have picked up its scent_

 _La, la, la, la, la,_

 _Spice it up,  
La, la, la, la, la,  
The swans are waiting  
[2x]_

 _My seafood brings all the birds to the yard,  
And they're like: It's better by far!  
DAMN RIGHT! It's better by far!  
I would teach you, but it'd be too hard  
[x2]_

Alice started shooing away the immense swarms of birds that had come flying in to taste Ryou's seafood, before turning back to him, hands on her hips.

"Okay, Mr. Show-Off von Sassy Pants," Alice laughed, "If you're done feeding the birds, we can go home now."

Kurokiba took off his bandana, reverting to his passive mode, and nodded. Alice walked over and gently kissed him, whispering "Thank you" before walking away.

And sighing contently, he followed.


	10. 5 Days Before Christmas

**G'Morning! Sorry that this came a few minutes late... Here's Day 7!**

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _Ding dong._

"UGH!"

"Ha ha ha…" Rindou chuckled loudly. "You're move, Headmaster. Are you going to open the door, or should I jump out the window again?"

Azami sat silently, contemplating this. Due to Tsukasa's protests, Rindou had not been tied up that morning, and although the window was locked, she could probably break it. "I'll open the door," he conceded grumpily. "but this is the last time, understood?"

Rindou grinned. "Aw, did your little scouting mission not go so well?"

"Are you questioning me!?" Azami boomed, clearly quite angry. Momo hid behind her stuffed toy, and Eizan tried to avoid eye contact with the headmaster, who stood up and unlocked the meeting room without another word.

Meanwhile, ninth seat Hayama Akira was thinking to himself, slightly concerned, but mostly just confused. "Kurokiba, Nakiri… What are you guys up to?" he muttered under his breath.

Kinokuni leaned forward, adjusting her glasses. "Come to think of it, weren't Nakiri Alice and Kurokiba Ryou your friends, Hayama-kun?"

"Yeah, I guess…" he grudgingly admitted, but Headmaster Azami was already out the door, Rindou in tow.

"Hello, Uncle Azami!" the familiar voice chirped. Speaking of chirped, a loud squawking of birds filled the lawn. Azami scanned the ground, only to spot an inflatable pool, filled to the brim with water… and swans.

"So the swimming pool wasn't a decoy…" he pondered, to which Alice responded, "Just listen!" Perfectly on cue, Takumi Aldini, followed by his brother, Isami, stepped in front of the pool. Although slightly nervous about singing a capella, Takumi smiled as he faced the Headmaster and began:

"On the seventh day of Christmas, my brother gave to me:" Takumi's voice was strong and confident, although quite high. His younger twin looked on proudly, as the blond Italian finished, "Seven swans a-swimming!"

Azami, eager to find a flaw in their song, quickly counted the swans and ensured that each one was, in fact, in motion. After he was unable to find any mistake, Hisako added, "Six geese a-laying," gesturing once again to her cart of nests.

"FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!" proclaimed Rindou from inside the meeting room. The sudden murmurs of amusement coming from inside seemed to suggest that she was making some absurd gesture or another.

Tadokoro took it away once more, "Four calling birds," "Three French hens!" "Two turtle doves" "And a partridge in a pear tree!"

Trying to hide his smile, Azami cleared his throat, before stating, "Now, Alice, this has been fun, but it stops here. I'm not opening the door again, okay?"

Alice nodded with a tight-lipped grin, as if amused by this response, then sang a quiet "Thank you for your time!"

The choir left silently, and as the headmaster returned to the meeting room, Rindou softly pouted, "What do you mean you're 'not opening the door again'? Where's your Christmas spirit, Headmaster?"

With a sigh, Azami mused, "I suppose we'll have to have someone watch you again tonight, Rindou. I'll put Tsukasa on duty." Finally, Headmaster Nakiri Azami closed the meeting room door for hopefully the last time, and returned to his meeting once more.

* * *

 **Finally, even if just for a short snippet, Hayama has come back into the spotlight! He's actually an important character here, trust me. I feel like I've been neglecting him a little bit... That's sad, I actually like his character. I'll try to include him more in the upcoming chapters.**


	11. Later That Night (2)

**Surprise night chapter number 2! I bet I REALLY surprised you this time! In all honesty, posting twice a day is a little much, even for me, BUT I'm trying my best to keep this story updated in what would be real time. SO. Here we are:**

* * *

Bring-bring. "

Hello?"

"It's Rindou," Tsukasa's voice urged, "She's on the move, that is, uh, she got away?"

"WHAT!?" Azami fumed, "Tsukasa! I told you to keep an eye on her!"

"I DID! But she ran away, I'm hunting her down now… I know she's somewhere around here…"

Azami knitted his eyebrows, before pleadingly conveying, "I NEED you to find her, ASAP. There's no telling what will happen next if she gets the chance to collaborate with Alice and the others!" The headmaster himself was, truly, quite unsure of what would indeed happen, but it seemed bad.

The first seat replied, "I know, I'm on it, I…"

Pause.

After a brief silence, Tsukasa's muffled voice called out, "Rindou?"

Azami stopped, holding his breath. Had the missing second seat been found so soon? Suddenly, there was a loud thunk. Tsukasa's voice continued, though now scratchy:

"What is…? Oh no. NO no no no no. HEADMASTER!"

There were a series of echoing thuds and screeches in the background, causing Azami to call out, "TSUKASA!? TSUKASA! Are you there!?"

"IT WAS A TRAP! IT'S A TRAP, HEADMASTER! THEY-" Suddenly, the line went dead, and the phone echoed with several hollow beeps.

Azami tried calling the first seat back several times, but it seemed Tsukasa had landed in a place where his phone had no signal. The headmaster couldn't help but worry; what exactly had happened, on that frosty December night?

* * *

 **Dun dun DUN! Come back tomorrow morning to discover Tsukasa's fate! Also, if all goes as plan, there will be a TsuRindou bonus chapter on the subject comming out tomorrow, too!**


	12. 4 Days Before Christmas

This meeting started differently than usual.

It could have been because of the new setting: Azami had moved the Elite Ten into the extra-large meeting hall, which only he had the key to. Kinokuni had been successful in confiscating the master-key, so there shouldn't be an issue with barging in. However, it wasn't just the extra space that made the meeting feel empty. Three of the chairs were vacant, as well: the usual one for a missing Erina, but also the chairs first and second seats were empty, which left two spaces at the Headmaster's left and right side. An awkward silence filled the hall, until…

Knock knock knock.

 _Ding dong._

Echoes. This hall was closer to the door than the previous one, and the emptiness caused the noise to reverberate off the walls.

"NOT TODAY!" Azami shouted at the door, his own voice bellowing back at him. Suddenly, the locked doors burst open.

The Elite Ten turned in alarm, to behold… a cow. A GIANT cow. And, on top of the animal, sat none other than… "TSUKASA!?" "And Rindou, too!" someone exclaimed, noting the second seat was behind him on the farm animal.

The first seat looked queasy, as he woefully moaned, "I'm not sure I'm up for this."

"Stop being such a wuss and go for it!" Rindou proclaimed.

"I still don't know..."

"Just imagine you're cooking," his girlfriend prompted

That seemed to calm Tsukasa down a bit, as his face became serious. With a deep breath and an encouraging nudge, he suddenly belted, "On the eighth-" "NOT YOU TOO!"

Ignoring the headmaster's cry, he proceeded, "-day of Christmas, my Rindou gave to me: eight maids a-milking!" Sure enough, several young maidens in colonial costume scampered into the meeting room and attempted to milk the cow they were riding, as well as the three other cows that had appeared behind them.

The line of livestock circled the table, directing the attention to the second cow, where Arato and Aldini rode with their respective fowls. "Seven swans a-swimming," "Six geese a-laying,"

Rindou leaped onto the meeting room table, spinning around while merrily caroling, "FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!", then laughing hysterically.

By this point, the parade of cows had circled around the table, and were headed back out the door, just in time for the riders of the third cow to add, "Four calling birds," "Three French hens,"

Then, Alice and Kurokiba turned back to wave at the Elite Ten members while finishing, "Two turtle doves," "and a partridge in a pear tree!" As Azami stood up to angrily slam the door, Alice quickly squeezed in, "Thank you for your ti-" SLAM.

He was done. Headmaster Nakiri Azami was done, avoiding these Christmas carols. It was too much work for not enough gain. Aloud, he questioned, "Should I call Alice's mother? Would that stop it?"

Rindou shook her head. "Nakiri Lenora was the one who bought the cows."

"I thought..."

"Nah, I bought the maids." Said maids, who had stayed behind, suddenly thrust a pail of milk in the first seat's face. "Is this good, Master Tsukasa?" one of them pondered in a Swedish accent.

"Uh, yeah, sure, thanks," he hastily replied, and dismissed them from the meeting room. Headmaster Azami suddenly stopped them from leaving, blocking the door as he declared:

"I suppose there are only two things left to say. First, Tsukasa….You truly have a wonderful voice." The choir's most recent addition shifted uncomfortably, before adding, "Um, thanks?"

"See? I TOLD you!" Rindou cheered.

Secondly, he requested, "Maids? Please tell Alice that I'll open the door for her tomorrow; there's no need to barge in again." The young ladies hastily nodded before rushing off to relay the message.

Hayama sat up in his seat. "What do you mean 'open the door for her'? Isn't this a giant waste of meeting time?"

Azami simply shook his head. "It is, but I can't think of a way to stop it. Besides, it isn't so bad. Don't you find it amusing, to see what they add to their chorus each day?" There was a general murmur of agreement from the Elite Ten, before they settled back down and got to work, trying to ignore the scent of barnyard in the room.

* * *

 **Ok, so yet another slightly absurd chapter. Sorry there was no warning this time; as the text stated, this meeting started differently, so I decided not to open with notes, unlike usual. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed picturing everyone parading around a larger meeting room on cows! I certainly did. In fact, this is probably my favorite chapter so far! Also, FYI, there won't be a night chapter this time, guys, just to save you the time it would take to check. There might be a bonus chapter, though!**


	13. Bonus 3: Crazier Than You

**And finally, a TsuRindou bonus chapter! I certainly don't do EiRin justice with my interpretation of their relationship, but this comes across as something sweet anyways!**

* * *

 _The previous night…_

Tsukasa never knew that Rindou could run so fast. He should have been more suspicious when she asked to go on a moonlit walk with him that evening, but he thought maybe she was just being romantic. He should have figured out that she was planning to escape long before she suddenly broke into a sprint towards a Nakiri-owned warehouse. Unfortunately, when it came to his mischievous girlfriend, the poor first-seat was perhaps too trusting.

After finding that the door was locked, Tsukasa entered the storage area and began to look around, only now realizing the immense scale of the place. Rows upon rows of boxes piled up to the ceiling formed a massive maze. He called Rindou's name, looked for footprints, and listened for Christmas carols, but soon realized that it would be impossible for him to track down a single girl in this place by himself.

The first thing he thought to do was call the Headmaster; after all, if he told Azami where they were, then the Headmaster would gladly send help. As he tried to explain the situation, however, Tsukasa was interrupted by a stern lecture from the aforementioned Azami:

"I NEED you to find her, ASAP. There's no telling what will happen next if she gets the chance to collaborate with Alice and the others!"

The Headmaster's voice seemed far less intimidating through the phone, giving Tsukasa the courage to reply with a certain amount of snark: "I know, I'm on it, I-"

That's when he saw her. Rindou, standing, nay, blocking the end of the aisle he was in, offering a loving smile. Lowering his phone from his ear, Tsukasa found himself in disbelief of how easy that was. "Rindou?"

She began to approach him, and only then did Tsukasa hear footsteps coming up behind him. Sure enough, he turned around to find his exit route was blocked by the intimidating trio of Isami Aldini (in full water weight form), his shorter brother, Takumi, and … Mina? Mouri? That kid with the glasses. Who knew what his name was.

"What is…?" he started, before understanding that he was now trapped. Tsukasa dropped his phone in shock. "Oh no. NO no no no no. HEADMASTER!"

He started to run away from the three boys, then noticed that Rindou was charging at him from that direction, and quickly decided that the underclassmen were clearly less of a threat. Letting out a screech of confusion, Tsukasa curled up in a ball on the floor, lamenting/yelling, "IT WAS A TRAP! IT'S A TRAP, HEADMASTER! THEY-"

 _Click._

Rindou hung up the cell phone with a tap of her toe. She crouched down beside him, giving her boyfriend a powerful pat on the back and comforting, "Calm down, you're alright, we're not gonna hurt ya."

Tsukasa glanced at her nervously. "You're going to make me join the choir, aren't you?"

Instantly, one of the walls of boxes slid back to reveal Nakiri Alice and Kurokiba. Alice grinned, "Pretty much! So, are you in?"

Standing up, the first-seat offered a hand up to Rindou, whispering, "Can we talk for a minute?"

Taking his hand, she rose to join him; the pair stepped away from the others. Before he could even speak, she met him with a suspiciously serious gaze. "Tsukasa, you know I love you, right?"

Blushing, he nodded.

She continued, "And you know I support you in most anything you do. That's because you're the best!" She leaned forward, adding, "If you're the first seat, I'll be your second seat. If you want to kick out the old Headmaster, my vote is yours. If you want to join Central, I'm right behind you."

Her boyfriend agreed, but noted, "Even though I do all the paperwork, and you refuse to vote other members out of the Elite Ten, and you occasionally rebel and go Christmas caroling during meeting times."

With a laugh, she conceded, "True, but you cover for me through those times because you love me, right?"

Tsukasa confirmed this without hesitance.

Rindou finished, "So, if this relationship is gonna work, we need to keep supporting each other! In this case, that means supporting this choir! Please, will you do it?" She pouted her lips, "For me?"

Smirking, Tsukasa confessed, "I'm not completely against the idea, to be honest. You do look like you're having a lot of fun when you're caroling…"

Alice chimed in, "That's because it IS a lot of fun!"

He ended, "But I'm worried about you, and me, too. What if Headmaster Azami decides to kick us out of the school?"

Rindou shrugged, unaffected. "So? Do you really think two people of our talents will have any trouble making a living, even if we are high school dropouts?"

Tsukasa considered this, then seemed to relax. "I guess you're right."

"Of course I am!" she grinned. "Besides, I highly doubt that Headmaster Azami will expel his two best student leaders. So, will you join us?"

"Sure," Tsukasa mused, "if you want me to, Rindou."

"I do!" she cheered. "Now Nakiri-chan, bring in the cows!"

His face fell. "Wait, what?"

The next moment, Kurokiba Ryou was operating a machine to move a quartet of bulky, mooing crates into view.

Alice proudly counted, "One, two, three, and four!" She exclaimed, "Yay! Mom actually shipped the right number of cows from Denmark!" Everyone began to applaud and cheer.

The first-seat facepalmed. _What have I gotten myself into?_

* * *

Later that night, cue Tsukasa and Rindo, holding hands, laughing as they leave the warehouse.

The cat-like queen cackled, "So, that's how you ride a cow! I never knew!"

Her partner chuckled, "It's certainly not something you would expect to learn at culinary school."

The pair laughed for a moment longer, before they fell into a strangely awkward silence, partially caused by the bizarre, pensive look on Rindou's face.

"Oi, Tsukasa?"

Still smiling, he stopped walking. "Yeah?"

"Am I too crazy for you?"

His face reverted to its serious form. "Of course not." Pulling her in, he kissed the top of her head. "Without you, I don't think I'd ever have fun."

Rindou giggled into his chest. "Yeah, that seems about right, you buzzkill!" Then, she stole another kiss.

As they continued down the path, she added, "And you keep me under control. I won't say you complete me; we're both whole people by ourselves. But thank you for balancing me out."

"Any time."


	14. Three Days Before Christmas

**Now onto Day 9! Christmas is SO CLOSE at this point! Now that Azami's agreed to open the door, will he learn to enjoy the caroling... Or the holiday season!?**

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _Ding dong_.

"Coming," called Azami, as Tsukasa and Rindou followed him to the door. As it opened, the Headmaster couldn't help but smile at the ridiculosity of this entire affair. After all, the front yard was now lined with birds and cows, and smack in the middle of it all stood a smirking boy with a confident stance.

The Headmaster simply nodded in approval. "Ah, Yukihira Soma. I suppose I should've guessed you'd join in on this at some point," he mused, slightly entertained by this farce.

Soma simply nodded back at him. "When Nakiri gave me the invite, I couldn't help but accept, Nakamura-senpai!" The young man suddenly grinned. "After all, caroling is an important part of every Yukihira-style Christmas!"

With that, he whipped out his headband and apron, as if preparing for a shokugeki, and began to enthusiastically sing, "On the ninth day of Christmas, Isshiki gave to me: nine ladies dancing!" Perfectly on cue, a kick-line of similarly dressed women appeared behind him, which included Sakaki Ryoko, Yoshino Yuki, Hojo Miyoko, Sadatsuka Nao, and Fumio-san.

"Eight maids a-milking", Tsukasa added, suddenly being handed a glass of fresh milk, which he proceeded to drink. "Seven swans a-swimming," "Six geese a-laying,"

"FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!" Rindou chanted, waiving her glimmering right hand in Tsukasa's face as if to remind him of their faux engagement.

With a smile, Megumi added, "Four calling birds," "Three French hens" "Two turtle doves" "And a partridge in a pear tree!"

Then, Tadokoro Megumi ran up to her cooking partner and best friend, calling out, "Soma-kun, you were amazing!"

He grinned. "You too, Tadokoro." The two high-fived, as he cried out his normal catch phrase of, "Glad you liked it!"

Nakiri Azami just shook his head, grinning, as Alice, unsurprisingly, thanked him for his time once more.

"Well? Did you enjoy it?" Rindou pestered on the way back to the meeting room.

"It wasn't terrible," the headmaster conceded.

"I'll take it! You're officially out of the Grinch zone, Headmaster!" she enthused.

Tsukasa sighed deeply as they entered the meeting hall. "You're always so excited, Rindou. How do you have so much energy?"

"How could you NOT be excited!? Christmas is just around the corner!"

"I know, but it's just gonna be another meeting day, right?"

Hayama Akira stood up, butting in with a sudden realization. "Yeah… come to think of it, we still have a meeting on Christmas Day, and all throughout the holidays, too, right?"

The Headmaster frowned. "Why yes, I suppose we do. Why do you ask?"

The ninth seat simply shook his head. "I don't know. I mean, traditionally, the 12 days of Christmas start on Christmas and continue after into January. I'm sure Nakiri know that, and yet, she chose to start her caroling sessions so they would end ON Christmas. Why?"

Azami pondered, "To spread the Christmas spirit in advance, perhaps?"

Hayama considered this, still unsure. "But why would she want to spread the Christmas spirit to us?" There were simply shrugs and mumbles among the Council; no one could come up with a decent reason why a group of rebels would want to cheer up their biggest enemies.

That question seemed to linger in the meeting room air, as the Central students hesitantly began to discuss the fates of those same carolers that had performed for them minutes before.

* * *

 **I'm glad Soma finally made it into this fic! I had no choice but to add in his signature catch phrase. I decided to go with the anime translation, "Glad you liked it," rather than the more-accurate manga translation, "Happy to serve!" Come to think of it, that actually would have been great... "I'm happy to serve up... SOME YUKIHIRA-STYLE CHRISTMAS CAROLS!" Maybe I'll change it...?**


	15. The Day Before Christmas Eve

**Christmas Eve is TOMORROW! Get excited! I know I am, and at this point, Headmaster Azami probably is, too! Let's find out:**

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _Ding dong_.

"Oh!" Azami exclaimed, getting out of his chair. "They're a bit early today. Not that there's anything wrong with that."

The headmaster held the meeting door for Tsukasa and Rindou, but before he could follow them out, he was called back.

"Headmaster!" With an annoyed sigh, Azami turned around to find Hayama Akira, stading up to challenge him.

"Headmaster, do we really have to do this? It's getting ridiculous! They're cutting into our meeting time, and we have important things to discuss!"

Azami merely giggled in response. "Fear not, Hayama-kun. I made sure to plan in some extra time in our schedule, just in case our favorite Christmas choir showed up!"

As he sauntered out with a flourish of his cape, Hayama could only grumble, "You're missing the point."

The first and second seats had closed the front door behind them, much to their headmaster's delight; now, he could thrust open the door to make an entrance. He smiled grandly as his niece exclaimed, "Hello, Uncle Azami!"

"Hello, Alice," Azami replied merrily. "Who's today's addition to the choir?"

"Just listen!" she sang in response as she gestured to her left. There, a long white table was set up, with several men wearing lab coats lining its sides. On the closest end of the table sat a teenage girl who, despite the cold weather, was wearing a swimsuit-like outfit and smiling.

Mito Ikumi nervously turned her head to the side, looking uncertain. Then, Yukihira, who was standing next to her with his ladies behind him, gave her a grin and a thumbs-up. Blushing, Mito looked up at her audience, and softly began to sing.

"On the tenth day of Christmas, my business sent to me…" Suddenly, she burst into a huge smile as she jumped off the table, reaching her arms out and stepping aside to reveal the table. "Ten lords a-meating!" she proudly announced. The men in lab coats held up their work, each one presenting a different type of meat. Azami instantly recognized one of them as the famous A-5 beef.

Then, everyone was silent.

Kurokiba coughed awkwardly, as Alice called, "Um, Mito-san? Can I talk to you for a moment?" The white-haired girl then dashed across the yard, and furiously whispered in the new recruit's ear.

Mito gasped, holding a hand to her mouth, before quickly correcting, "Ten lords a-LEAPing!" There was another pause, as Mito turned around and ordered, "JUMP, YOU IDIOTS!" The nervous meaters immediately started to helplessly hop up and down in place.

The annoyed meat master whirled around, arms crossed. She mumbled, "If there's no meat involved, why did you guys even ask me to come?"

Soma, deciding this was the right time to continue, joined his kick-line and hastily sang, "Nine ladies dancing!"

"Eight maids a-milking!" Tsukasa added, now not only drinking a glass of milk, but sitting in a new cow-skin throne with Rindou on his lap.

The Aldinis added in unison "Seven swans a-swimming!" "Six geese a-laying"

"FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!" Rindou stood up on the arms of Tsukasa's chair. She had stolen his glass of milk, and raised it as if she was proposing a toast.

Tadokoro continued, "Four calling birds," "Three French hens" "Two turtle doves…" "And a partridge in a pear tree!"

Azami subconsciously burst into mad applause, but then stopped himself.

Alice chirped "Thanks for your time!" as she ran over to console the pouting Mito.

Azami welcomed Tsukasa and Rindou back inside, then closed the door with a sigh and skipped back to the meeting room, where a grumpy Hayama-kun was waiting.

The ninth seat complained, "Headmaster, I really think you should stop answering the door."

Azami turned his head sideways, and let out a chuckle. "You know what? I think you're right, Hayama-kun. I've been being selfish."

Hayama nodded, and muttered "Thank you!" Azami nodded enthusiastically. "Tomorrow, you can open the door, Hayama-kun!"

As the angry first year face-palmed, his headmaster continued, "In fact, I insist! I'm sorry, Hayama, it hadn't crossed my mind that you might be feeling left out. After all, one day, Momo and Rindou got answer the door, and now Tsukasa is part of the choir…. You must feel awful!"

Hayama replied, "Yes, actually, I do feel awful," as he put his head down on the table and prepared to suffer the consequences of his actions the next day.

* * *

 **Poor Hayama-kun... He should know better than to challenge the Christmas spirit! Oh, and sorry (not really) for the meat pun... I honestly couldn't help it. As soon as I thought "10 Lords A-Meating", it was done, no turning back. I'm kinda a major pun-lover, y'see, so I couldn't resist!**


	16. Later that Night (3)

**SURPRISE NIGHT CHAPTER NUMBER 3! This is actually the last one, so enjoy it, ok? After all, I won't be free the night before Christmas!**

* * *

Bring-bring.

"Hello?"

"HAYAMA-KUUUUN!"

The ninth seat sighed into his cell phone, partially because of the noisy and over-the-top introduction, and partially because, after an awful day like this, it was nice to hear that Professor Shiomi Jun was still alright.

"Yes, Jun?" he replied.

"Don't call me Jun! Anyway, I, um, I need something."

The teenage boy knitted his eyebrows. "What do you need? Is something wrong?"

Jun laughed nervously. "No, no, nothing's wrong, it'd just… I'd like to… hire some people."

Hayama was just as confused as Jun sounded. "Hire… some people? Which people? What are you hiring for? If you need help with your experiments, I'd be happy to…"

"No, no, it's not that," she interrupted. "It's only for a few days. I want to… try something."

Hayama shook his head. "Could you be more specific than 'try something'?"

"Music!" she chirped. "I want to try working to live music. So I can… see how it affects the spice plants!"

Before he could interject about how stupid that was, Jun pleaded, "I just need to arrange for a handful of musicians to come over tomorrow, and get some money to pay them with. I thought, maybe, because now you're in the Elite Ten, you could… help me out?"

Jun's voice cracked and squeaked on the phone. As dumb as the idea seemed to Hayama, he found himself unable to say no to her.

"Alright, Jun. I'll find some musicians to hire for you."

"Oh! You don't need to find the musicians. I've already found them!" After a pause and the sound of rustling papers, she stated, "I want Fay Loot, Bob Ode, Pippi P. Pare..." The list continued. Once she finished telling him the names, she said goodbye and good night and hung up, leaving him alone to do some research.

As Hayama looked up the musicians Jun listed, he found the names he was given were members of the Professional Band Society, with each member specializing in a woodwind instrument. If you buy their services, you need to pay for at least two days' worth of music.

The ninth seat paid online, and told the musicians to report to Jun's place the next morning. The price was extremely steep, but he bought it anyways. After all, it was like an early Christmas gift for Jun. Ugh. Christmas.

As thoughts of his former friends' caroling crept into Hayama's mind, he scowled and decided to go to bed. That night, he tossed and turned in his sheets, but no matter how he tried, he could not get the song 12 Days of Christmas out of his head.

* * *

 **So, in case anyone was planning to ask, I do not ship Hayama x Jun. I have nothing against the ship, and if you want to interpret this chapter romantically, go ahead! However, personally, I see it as more of a mother-child relationship. I'm sure I'm making all the HayaJun (is that even the ship name?) fans out there cringe by saying that, so I apologize.**


	17. Christmas Eve

**Christmas Eve! I can't believe that I'm almost done with this fic! It's a sort of happy-sad feeling, finishing up your first work...**

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _Ding dong_.

"Oh, Hayama-kun! It's YOUR turn to open the door today!"

Hayama glanced at the seriously merry look on his headmaster's face, then at the two empty chairs around the table, reserved for the absent first and second seats. With a sigh, he got up and approached the door, Azami closely following him.

When he cracked it open, Kurokiba and Alice were standing side by side immediately in front of him, an expectant smile on their faces.

Alice beamed, "Why if it isn't Hayama-kun? It's been a while, now hasn't it?"

Kurokiba smirked. "Nice make-over, Hayama. You sure are looking spiffy."

"Shut up," Hayama replied, but after seeing the hurt glance on Headmaster Azami's face, he added, "So, who did you recruit to your choir this time?"

"Someone that you know quite well." Alice teased. Azami curiously pushed past Hayama to take his place in the front of the doorway. Alice and Kurokiba parted to reveal a tiny, timid professor fidgeting on the ground below.

"JUN!?" Hayama shouted, utterly shocked to see his adoptive mother.

"Um, hello, Hayama-kun, Headmaster. Uh, ahem." She turned to face a group of eleven uniformed musicians standing on her right. They played the now-recognizable opening chord to the 12 Days of Christmas, as Jun began to sing. "On the eleventh day of Christmas, Hayama gave to me…"

"WHAT!? I gave something?"

"Eleven pipers piping!" The pipers played along to the classic carol in perfect harmony, their grandeur making up for the professor's shyness.

Alice winked at Hayama. He'd been played! He should have been more suspicious of that strange, shockingly specific request from Jun last night. And since he'd already paid for two days, tomorrow was a guarantee, too. Hayama couldn't believe he'd been so stupid.

"Ten lords a-leaping," Mito sang hesitantly, still slightly hurt from yesterday's mishap. "Nine ladies dancing!"

"Eight maids-a-milking," Tsukasa sang, tipping his new cowboy hat while trying not to spill his glass of fresh milk on his new cow-print shirt or the cow-skin chair. "Seven swans a-swimming" "Six geese a-laying"

"FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!" belted Rindou, riding on one of Tsukasa's cows and sneak up behind him to steal his hat.

"Four calling birds" "Three French hens" "Two turtle doves" "And a partridge in a pear tree!"

This time, Azami let himself clap, while nodding appreciatively at Shiomi Jun, who gave him a wary glance in return.

"Thank you for your time!" Alice added as usual, to which Azami returned, "No, thank you!"

She smiled at him, then added, "Bye, Hayama-kun", and departed.

Hayama was clearly shaken. Why would Jun join their choir? What was the point of all this?

Azami patted the ninth seat on the back. "There's no need to look so troubled. It's almost Christmas!"

The ninth seat nodded slowly in response. "I suppose it is." Tsukasa's words from previously echoed in Hayama's head, _"It's just gonna be another meeting day."_ Then, he thought about all the previous Christmases in his life:

At first, the holiday meant nothing to him. On the streets of India where he'd lived, nobody gave any more than usual, or acted generously because it was Christmas. The world was still cruel and confusing, and at that time, colder than ever. After Jun came along, though, she introduced him to a whole new culture, full of lights and cookies and celebration... Although Christmas celebrations could never compare to the events on New Year's Day, in Japan.

Next, Hayama thought about his "friends", Alice and Kurokiba, and all the effort they had put into this whole caroling scheme. Once more, he wondered: What exactly did they want from all this? Then, he realized that maybe, just maybe, they were simply celebrating Christmas in their own way. With a slight grin, Hayama wondered who they were going to add the last day, who would become the star on their caroling Christmas tree. Whoever it was, he silently wished them good luck, as he sat down in his meeting room chair once more.


	18. Christmas Day

**Merry Christmas, all! Heads up: this isn't quite the last chapter, I'll be posting an epilogue tomorrow, and possibly some more bonus chapters, too. Now, it's time to wrap things up, and have the whole choir sing my favorite Christmas carol! Feel free to sing along!**

* * *

Knock knock knock.

 _Ding-dong._

"Everybody, up!" the headmaster cheered. The remaining members of the Elite Ten (Rindou and Tsukasa had skipped the start of that morning's meeting) rose to their feet, and on Azami's orders, followed him to the front door. It was Christmas Day, after all, and everyone was expected to watch the grand finale of the caroling spectacle.

The Council gathered on the lawn, where three rows of bleachers were set up, containing all eleven carolers, who were dressed in matching choir robes and arranged by voice pitch."Hello, Uncle Azami!" Alice called from the soprano section.

"Merry Christmas, Alice," he replied. "I don't see the newest member of your choir..."

"Just listen," she mused. "After all, today we've prepared one very special Christmas carol for you!"

"Let's hear it!" He challenged, crossing his arms and smiling cheerfully. Suddenly, they all began to sing:

"HARK THE HERALD, ANGELS SING: GLORY TO THE NEW BORN KING!"

They bellowed in an epic five-part harmony. Meanwhile, Tsukasa's maids and Soma's ladies had joined together in the background to add in an angelic 'Gloria in ex celsis deo'. The choir of eleven smiled to each other, continuing with their song;

"PEACE ON EARTH AND MERCY MI-"

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" Azami boomed, and all was silent. The headmaster's face was bright red, and riddled with a terrible scowl. Loudly, he demanded, "What... IS...THIS!?" A cow mooed.

Alice smiled innocently, pondering "Whatever do you mean, dear Uncle? We've worked incredibly hard to prepare this song for you!" The rest of the choir mumbled in agreement.

"We've been practicing non-stop since yesterday," Rindou explained before adding, "Hey, Professor Shiomi, we totally CRUSHED that alto harmony!" The tiny teacher nodded in agreement, as the two high-fived.

"NO! No nonononono," Azami interjected. Rindou and Jun looked at him with hurt expressions. "Wait, no, I didn't mean... Your alto harmony was great, but my POINT is, what happened to The Twelve Days of Christmas!? After all that build-up, you're just going to throw it away like this? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE!?"

Hayama shuffled over to Kurokiba, whispering, "For the headmaster's sake, PLEASE tell me you have that shrub hidden around here somewhere."

After a few moments of silence, Alice descended from the bleachers, taking off her robe to reveal a white turtleneck sweater and gray leggings. "Well, Uncle Azami, if you _really_ want us to continue with that song, there just so happen to be twelve drummers over there." She gestured to a group of obviously prepared percussionists, before continuing, "But someone would have to pay them."

"I'll pay!" Azami shouted, "I'll pay whatever you want!"

His niece grinned mischievously, as Kurokiba joined her in front of the stands to chime in, "Uh, Headmaster, there's still one more thing you need: a new choir member."

On cue, the second seat suddenly called, "Hey, Tsukasa, don't we need another tenor?"

Caught off-guard, the first seat stuttered, "Huh? Well, I kinda thought Takumi-kun and I are singing the part pretty-" She elbowed him in the gut. "A-a third tenor would be great, actually," he quickly corrected.

"Hayama-kun's a tenor," Jun blushed from her bleacher spot. Everyone's eyes turned to the ninth seat, who simply muttered an "Oh no."

Headmaster Azami begged, "Please, Hayama-kun!" practically on his knees.

Alice persuaded, "It'll be fun!"

"Or are you too chicken?" Kurokiba taunted. A hen clucked.

The proposed tenor shook his head, slightly smiling. "So, this was it, huh? You did all of this just to get me to sing?" The pair of choir leaders exchanged a glance, before looking back at him silently. "Fine, I'll do it," he finally conceded.

There was a general cheer among the choir, the Elite Ten, and the swans, as Alice and Kurokiba rushed to either side of Hayama. "Ok, so the line is 'Twelve drummers drumming'," coached the former. "Don't mess up," said the latter. "Wasn't planning on it," snipped the last. With that, the pipers played the opening chord, and the drummers did an epic drum roll, as everyone stared expectantly at Hayama Akira.

"On the, um, twelfth day of Christmas Headmaster, um, Nakiri Azami gave to me," he rushed awkwardly, clearly unprepared. "Twelve drummers drumming!" he proclaimed merrily.

"Eleven pipers piping," added Jun, coming up to squeeze Hayama's hand, then give him a hug.

Suddenly, the rest of the Elite Ten decided to join in the choir on the bleachers:

"Ten lords a-leaping," sang Mito, along with new fifth seat Shoko.

"Nine ladies dancing!" chanted Yukihira Soma and Saito Somei.

"Eight maids a-milking," Tsukasa belted alone, helping Rindou board one of his cows, which was wearing a Santa hat.

"Seven swans a-swimming," Takumi and Julio-senpai continued,

"Six geese a-laying," caroled Hisako and Kinokuni,

"FIVE GOLDEN RINGS!" Rindou yodeled, completely savoring her last few moments in the spotlight.

"Four calling birds," chirped Momo and Megumi,

"Three French hens," proceeded Marui and a hesitant Eizan Etsuya, who had secretly wanted to join the choir this whole time,

"Two turtle doves," Alice slowed, taking Kurokiba's hand and resting her head on his shoulder.

"And a partridge in a pear..." Kurokiba suddenly paused, looked around, then called out, "Everybody!"

" **TREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!** " Everybody finished, then cheered, wishing each other a Merry Christmas.

Headmaster Nakiri Azami, practically in tears, cheerfully announced, "Today's meeting is... Canceled! So are all the meetings next week, take some time off, MERRY CHRISTMAS!"

The Elite Ten echoed the greeting, some rushing off to make plans. Tsukasa and Rindou rode up behind Alice and Kurokiba to hold mistletoe above their heads; both couples began fervently kissing.

"Hooray!" cheered Shiomi Jun to her assistant. "Now, thanks to your friends, you can come home for the holidays, Hayama-kun!"

The ninth seat suddenly looked up: that was it! They had done this caroling stunt because... He frantically searched the area for Nakiri Alice and Kurokiba Ryou, but they were gone. Like ghosts of Christmas' past with their mission completed, the couple had simply disappeared.

Hayama cursed his own stupidity: he should've realized it sooner. He just couldn't believe that even after his harsh betrayal, his closest friends would still want to annoy him, to tease him, but most of all, to make him smile, and yet that had been their goal all along. Nakiri and Kurokiba hadn't given up on him, and they used twelve days, twenty-three birds and one heck of a song to tell him.

Hayama couldn't think of a way to thank them enough, so instead he mused, "Hey, Jun: Do you think we could go home and make Christmas cookies for Nakiri and Kurokiba?"

She nodded enthusiastically. "I'd like nothing better." After a pause, she sniffled, "You know, I've missed you, Hayama-kun."

Taking her hand, he gently whispered, "I've missed you, too."

"Merry Christmas, Hayama-kun."

"Merry Christmas."

* * *

 **I hope y'all sang along with the ending of 12 Days of Christmas! That "everybody" broke the fourth wall, so everyone reading was supposed to belt that out. I know I sang along (I was the one doing all the crazy-terrible riffs, trying to look cool). Anyway, Merry Christmas again, and I'll see you tomorrow for that last time! :(**


End file.
